Russian line over Syria unchanged after bombing

A Russian foreign ministry official said Moscow would not soften its opposition to the draft of a western-backed UN Security Council resolution against Syria following Wednesday’s bombing in Damascus.

Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bodganov said Russia was “resolutely” against issuing a resolution under the UN charter’s Chapter 7, which allows the council to authorize measures ranging from diplomatic and economic sanctions to military intervention.

“We’d appreciate our western partners explaining to us how they conceive of using the reference to Chapter 7 against those who are carrying out terrorist acts,” the Interfax news agency reported him as saying.

The UN’s special envoy on Syria Kofi Annan has called on the Security Council to delay a vote scheduled for Wednesday afternoon on the draft resolution, which contains a threat of non-military sanctions against President Bashar al-Assad’s government. Russia has drafted its own resolution against Syria that does not contain the threat of sanctions.